Hiskott did not expect to have the body he wants already occupied, but he is also very unused to being resisted. He fights, too, and his desire is not "eat" but "control". He tries to stretch the digital ghost of himself through Serph's body, trying to wrestle Varuna under control as much as Serph himself.

Jolie reaches for his hand, as if that will help. It won't, she thinks, but she can't do nothing. Serph with Hiskott in him will probably kill her. But it's okay. She's been prepared for that for a long time. She just hates that it had to happen to someone she knows, who had been free.